If you’re scanning this website thinking, “I’m not sure if Housing Options can help someone like me,” read on!
Suzanne McColl was exploring housing choices for her daughter, Kirsten, 30, who has quadriplegic cerebral palsy.
“What starts out as a quick Google search can leave you chasing link after link for hours on end! Even when you finally hit on something that looks half promising, you’ve got to scroll through screeds of information to find out if you’re actually eligible.”
Wrongly assuming that we only worked on behalf of ex-service personnel, Suzanne wasn’t sure if Housing Options Scotland was for her. Luckily, she got in touch anyway, and her daughter is now waiting for missives to be concluded on a two-bedroom ground floor flat just five minutes away!
Suzanne is the first to admit she was slightly put off by what seems a lengthy application process-
“To be honest, filling out the Housing Options Scotland form seemed a bit daunting. There were so many questions to answer – and how was I to know whether anything would come of it?!”
Housing Options Service Manager, Ryan MacDonald, persuaded Suzanne that detailing as much information as possible would provide a clearer picture of the options available to Kirsten. One of these was to apply for a shared ownership scheme with Horizon Housing Association, and despite Suzanne’s concerns about how long this would take to deal with, the end result could not have been more timely-
“Of all places, I was sitting in a blizzard in a car park on my 65th birthday when Horizon called to say they were sending someone out to speak to me!”
A few days later, Suzanne was stunned to be offered 60% towards the cost of purchasing the flat, leaving herself and her husband with the remaining 40%. She then went on to secure funds for a wet room, hoist and wheelchair access.
What impressed Suzanne most about her experience was our good communication. Throughout the process, our Housing Options Broker Christine was on hand to help with any queries and to provide constant encouragement and support.
“Housing Options Scotland were just great! They kept in touch with us the whole time, and were there whenever I needed them. I can’t speak highly enough of them!”